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Egalitarianism Quote by Robert A. Nisbet

“If all human beings in a population either are declared equal in their native strengths and rights, or else are persuaded to believe this, then the eventual realization of the hard truth of the matter that no amount of redistribution of wealth and status can ever obliterate inequality in one form…” quote by Robert A. Nisbet
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““If all human beings in a population either are declared equal in their native strengths and rights, or else are persuaded to believe this, then the eventual realization of the hard truth of the matter that no amount of redistribution of wealth and status can ever obliterate inequality in one form or another must often take the form of covetousness mixed with resentment: that is, envy. …The only remedy for the poisons created by egalitarianism in a society is emphatically not ever-greater dosages of political redistribution of wealth and status, for such dosages worsen the disease, producing fevers of avarice and envy. No, the sole remedy for this pathology is the introduction and diffusion of individual liberty as a sovereign value. Respect for individual liberty makes it possible for human beings to live in and be aware of differentiation a condition that, in biology, is recognized for what it is, the basis of progressive evolution, but which, in its social manifestation, receives no such recognition because of both the inequality intrinsic to all social differentiation and the ideology of equality that has spread so widely and so devastatingly in the twentieth century.””

Robert A. Nisbet

About This Quote

Source Essay: Equality and Liberty, Robert A. Nisbet, 1970

Declaring everyone equal in strength and rights leads to envy; true remedy is fostering individual liberty, not more redistribution.

In simple terms: Equality claims breed resentment; liberty reduces it.

Key Takeaway

Promote personal freedom over forced equality.

Themes

equality envy liberty redistribution social policy

Mood

critical thoughtful

Type

philosophical political

When to use this quote

  • political reform
  • education
  • community building
  • economic policy

Key Concepts

individual rights social dynamics human nature

Questions to Reflect On

  • How can societies balance liberty with fairness?
  • What limits exist on individual freedom?
A Different Perspective

Liberty alone may not address structural injustices.

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